


Forget Me Not

by sisterawesomeness



Series: Team Fortress 2: The Rogue Series [5]
Category: TF2 - Fandom, TF2 AU - Fandom, Team Fortress 2, Team Fortress 2 AU - Fandom
Genre: Gen, Original 10th Class, RED Team bonding, Rogue Universe with Autobalance, Team Fortress 2 Autobalance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-03
Updated: 2015-11-04
Packaged: 2018-04-29 17:04:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 7,260
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5135666
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sisterawesomeness/pseuds/sisterawesomeness
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>No one can truly predict the autobalance. But it’s supposed to wipe your memory of whoever was shifted to the other team. That way you don’t have to worry about shooting an old friend in the face. So why didn’t it work this time? Why do they all still remember Sonny? And what will they do seeing the Rogue now wearing the enemy color?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Trouble With Autobalance

**Author's Note:**

> **Just another alternate universe thing involving Sonny. I own nothing but her and this is what would happen if autobalance existed in her world.**
> 
> **Also, this is in part inspired by the fanfic Memories by Hiyume. I suggest you go read it.**

Sonny wasn't sure what to think about autobalance. It sounded weird and even Engie had trouble explaining it to her. From what she could gather the teams were somewhat even, her appearance had somewhat altered that, but for whatever reason respawn could be a bitch now and then. People would 'die' like normal but instead of instantly respawning they would basically 'disappear.' Though Engineer said it was more like they were 'stuck'. Their DNA and genetic makeup somehow would get caught up or clogged in the system. It could take respawn anywhere from a few minutes to a week to, in simple terms, 'spit them out'. Sometimes Engie had to manually fix it so they'd come back out.

Until then the teams would be unbalanced. That wouldn't do and autobalance would kick in. That meant the next time someone died they'd get kicked over to the other team in an attempt to 'even things out'. To her it was horrifying. She wasn't sure she could look at her old teammates and kill them. Even knowing they'd just go through the BLU respawn system instead and be fine.

But she was then told autobalance had another strange side effect. It made whoever was balanced over forget about their old team and the old team would also forget about them. Someone would still be able to tell they were balanced and the old team would realize they were missing someone. But they simply wouldn't remember any details. All of the guys had been balanced at some point or another and shared what they recalled with her. It was unsettling to say the least.

She thought it was because it recalled back to when she first showed up there. Not knowing anything was horrible. She didn't want to forget her teammates! They were the only people she cared about. And she also wondered… Oh God what if she was ever autobalanced? She'd not only get a new team but loose her friends and her old life. Again. That was perhaps her worst nightmare at this point in time. How could she not think and dwell on this? Every time she went into battle it was at the back of her mind.

What if this was the time? What if she lost one of her friends to the BLU team? What if she was switched over and forgot everything all over again? What if the REDs forgot about her? She wasn't sure what was more terrifying. The thought she'd be starting over yet again, or the fact no one would remember her.


	2. I Remember Him

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **I just really love these side stories with Sonny.**

Sonny was so nervous about this that when it finally happened it was almost a relief. Almost. The Administrator announced that an autobalance had taken place… And she completely forgot the objective. She could care less about standing and defending a point. No, she was more preoccupied with _who_ got autobalanced. She frantically went through the classes in her head and gave a face to everyone… Nearly. "Oh my God," she gasped.

Scout! She couldn't remember Scout. She knew he was a member of the team… And that he was the Scout but she couldn't remember any details about him. None at all. She couldn't remember what he looked like or if they were close. It was all a familiar ugly blank. Just like when she tried to think back to before she woke up.

Why couldn't she remember?! He'd been a teammate. Possibly a friend and she just… Forgot him. Nu uh. Not on her watch. She was done forgetting things. "Horseshit," she stormed past her celebrating teammates as their victory rang over the speakers. She had other things to do.

~*~

Later.

Engineer and the others had thought it odd seeing their Rogue run off like that after they'd won. But no one thought that much of it. Maybe experiencing autobalance for the first time had freaked the little fella out. It had them. He'd get over it and sooner or later they all knew they'd get their Scout back. It was just a matter of being patient.

But then no one saw him for the rest of the night. Engie woke up early to start making breakfast when he caught a glimpse of the other RED. "What in tarnation?" he muttered and went over to him. The younger man was sitting in the middle of the hall staring at a door. Intently. Like that door had all the answers. Had he even changed out of his clothes after the battle? "What are ya doin' pardner?"

"Trying to remember," Sonny answered not looking away from the door.

"What?"

"Him," Sonny finally looked at the man. He could see the bags under his teammate's eyes. It was then Engineer noted they were in front of what would be the 'Scout's door.' The man's things were probably still inside for when he would return.

"How ya plannin' on doin' that?" he had to ask. "If you want to maybe find some answers you could look through his…"

"No," Sonny held up a hand. "I can't just go through his stuff. I wouldn't want someone going through my things if that was me. Well, if I had things. The point is this was his room Engie. He was right here. Yesterday."

"Come on now," he could tell this was bothering the younger man. "He'll be back afore you know it."

"That doesn't matter!" Sonny was on her feet. "The fact was he was one of us. He still is in my book. And I want to remember him. Now. I want to know what he looked like, what conversations we had, did we ever hang out? Did we…"

"Come along little fella," he gently put a shoulder around the younger RED. He slowly led the man down the hall toward the kitchen. "Starin' at a door ain't gonna do nothin' but drive you nuts. Now, let's get some food in ya. You'll need if for the fight today."

"Yeah," Sonny sighed. "The fight…"

~*~

Hours later.

"He is a liability," Spy smoked like he always did. Sonny didn't look in much better shape than when Engie had first found him. His hair was all over the place, he still wore the clothes from yesterday, and he looked like he was going to pass out any moment.

"Give the lad a break," Demo nodded at their youngest member. He sat on a nearby bench checking his rifle with Pyro mumbling things at him the entire time.

"We do not have time to 'ive him a break'," Spy countered. "If you hadn't noticed we are in the middle of a war. We cannot afford to be soft on the BLUs."

"E ain't gonna go easy on the BLUs," Sniper stated. "He'll be beatin' 'em to death all day."

"Vhat about the Scout?" he didn't miss a beat. There was an awkward silence at that. "He knows the rules. He has to learn this is how it works."

"He'll be fine," Medic spoke up. "I'll keep an eye on him during zhe battle."

"It would not be hard," Heavy backed him up.

"I will make sure the maggot does not go easy on the traitor!" Soldier shouted.

"You're not helpin' Solly," Engie said. "Listen, he can stick by me today. Keep the BLU Spy off my back while I put up my sentry and such."

"Very well," Spy finished one cigarette and started another without so much as blinking. "But make sure he sticks to the objective. The last thing we need is someone being distracted by their sentimentality."

~*~

Shortly.

Sonny nearly jumped as the Administrator announced it was time to go. She made sure to stick close to Engie like he told her. Part of her was happy for the distraction of protecting him. It kept her mind occupied. But not for long. Maybe fate was playing with her but for whatever reason she saw a flash of blue as Engie put up a sentry on their control point.

"I'm gonna beat on your skull 'till I hit tonsils."

She froze when she heard that. Why did that accent sound so familiar? She turned and saw Engie was dealing with another sentry. She blasted the BLU Soldier coming at them without a problem. But then she saw the Scout. He was standing right in front of her.

"What are you lookin at?!" he sneered holding his bat. She reached for her shotgun out of instinct… But her hand stopped. There was a flaring pain in her head and suddenly images flashed before her. This man in front of her had been her Scout! She saw an image of them shooting each other with syringes, another of them fighting over a plate of ribs, another of him ruffling her hair after she stole his hat. She knew him. She remembered him! He had been her friend!

Oh shit she remembered him. And now he looked like he wanted to beat her head in. "Wait!" she motioned before he stepped forward. He did hesitate and she knew it would only be for a second. "I remember you Scout! It's me Sonny!"

"Who?" he asked.

"Sonny! We were on the same team before you were shuffled. Please remember. We shot each other in a syringe fight. And there was that one time you put a 'kick me' sign on Soldier's back and we watched him spinning in circles trying to get it off!"

He briefly chuckled at that and caught himself. Something she couldn't name flashed across his eyes as he looked her in the eye. "Sonny?"

"I…" She didn't get to finish that sentence as she felt a knife go deep into her spine. The last thing she saw before respawn claimed her was Scout's eyes nearly doubling in size as he reached out for her. She could've sworn he called her name.

~*~

A few seconds later.

"Damn Spy," Engineer swore as soon as he respawned. The bastard had sapped his sentry and then stabbed him. He briefly wondered if Sonny had managed to kill him… Before he heard the respawn machine fire up again and not a moment later the younger RED had appeared in front of him. "Got you too?" he asked already heading for the door. Off in the distance the Administrator yelled something about the point being contested. He stopped when he noticed he didn't hear footstep following him.

He turned and saw Sonny hadn't moved from where he sat on the floor. A despondent look on his face. "Pardner?" he tentatively asked. "You alright?" Sonny didn't answer and that started to freak Engie out.

~*~

Later.

"What the hell is this?" Spy demanded as the team congregated back near the respawn room. He saw more than one teammate standing around their Rogue who appeared to be in what Medic called 'shock' on the floor. Medic was next to him checking his vitals while Engie and Demo stood nearby looking worried. Heavy and Sniper gave them a little more room but they hadn't left their younger teammate after they'd respawned and seen him sitting there. Pyro nearly bounced around mumbling things even the Engineer could barely get.

"I cannot be zure," Medic stated. "Vhat happened before you two respawned?"

"The BLU Spy stabbed me and I'm guessin' he was the one who got Sonny…"

"It appears your plan did not work out," Spy interrupted. "He failed to."

"Give it a rest," the Engineer turned on the man so fast everyone else in the room stopped and stared. "We won so I don't know what yer complain' 'bout. Now go off somewhere else if yer not gonna help. Sonny's been through enough as it is."

"Sonny?" Medic tried to get through. "Can you hear me?" They all waited a moment but the RED turned his head in Medic's direction. They couldn't be sure if he was actually focusing in on the other man or not. "Good. Now, can you tell me vhat happened before you returned here?"

"I…" There was a pause and understanding seemed to form on the Rogue's face. The youngest member jumped up so fast it startled everyone and Medic nearly jumped out of his skin. "Medic!" he turned and looked at the man. "I need to talk to you. In private. NOW."

Medic didn't hesitate as he looked at the others and said, "You heard him! Schnell! Raus, RAUS!"

The others were somewhat flustered as they were ushered out by the Medic and the door slammed in their faces. The door itself and the walls were so thick it wasn't like they could eavesdrop. So they were left looking at each other and wondering what the hell that was about.

"Vhat is it kleiner?" Medic inquired. He knew it had to be something important to get Sonny so flustered.

"I remember."

"Remember vhat?"

"I remember him Medic. I remember Scout."


	3. Do You Recall

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **What Sonny brought up with Medic will be addressed here soon enough. Until then…**

Another day.

"SCOUT!" Sonny nearly tackled the man as he came out of their respawn room.

"God Sonny," Scout fought not to topple over. "Choke me why don't ya?" He paused when he noticed the younger man was somewhat shaking. He decided to return the hug. "Ya really miss me that much?"

"You wish dipshit," Sonny fought not to cry. She was just so happy he was back. Her team was complete again. "Hey Scout?" she pulled back and let him breathe.

"Yeah?"

"Do you remember anything from your time being a BLU?"

He seemed to think it over a moment before he shook his head. "Nah. Not a thing. But that's how respawn works ya know?"

"I guess…"

That didn't stop her from writing things down on a few pieces of paper. She also stealthily took photos of her team thanks to an old camera she found in Spy's supplies. It was so ancient he probably wouldn't miss the thing. She took pics of all of her teammates and wrote descriptions about them. She then made a sort of scrapbook. That way even if she forgot her teammates she'd have something to go on. It would help her cheat the autobalance. But she did wonder how she was able to recall her memories of Scout in the first place.

But another thought tugged at her. This book would help her if one of her teammates was autobalanced. But not if she was. If that was the case she was shit out of luck.

~*~

A few days later.

Sniper was gone next. But this time she was ready. She didn't have to go out and stare at his van. Instead she went back inside and looked at her book. It took a little over thirty minutes but after staring at his picture and rereading what she'd written she fully remembered him.

Did not make things easier on the battlefield. She was somewhat lucky in that he tended to stay up in his hideout for most of the battle. Even as a BLU. But then Soldier took it out with a rocket and soon enough she saw her old teammate on the field. Thankfully, both Medic and Heavy seemed to take it upon themselves to keep her away from him. Anytime he got close to her he'd get a face full of syringes or bullets berried in his back.

But they couldn't keep them separated forever and in one of the following battles he nearly ran her over as they both bolted through the same building. "Bloody piss!" he pulled out his Kukri and took a swing at her.

"Sniper!" she managed to dodge but didn't pull out her hammer. "Please don't! It's me!"

"Hold still ya wanka!" he attempted to get at her.

"I can't do this," she said before literally diving out a window. She couldn't do it. She couldn't fight and kill her own friends. It was alright for a while. She avoided him like the plague and if she did run into him she either killed herself or threw herself out of the situation. Ended up with a broken back, leg, arm, and some nasty bruises as a result. But it was a little price to pay and she found it somewhat ironic respawn could easily fix her. As a result her numbers were not that great. None of the others said anything but she figured it was only a matter of time.

Sure enough the issue came to a head after they'd lost a round. No one was happy, especially Spy. "What do you think you are doing out there?" he loomed over her.

"What?"

"You know what," he sneered down at her. "I told you to kill the BLU Sniper."

"I…"

"You didn't. And as a result I got a bullet in my head and we lost."

"Come on Spy," Engie spoke up. "Ya can't blame the entire thing on 'em."

"No, we were all a miserable disgrace out there," the man replied. "But you more so. Your feelings are holding you back. The team is suffering because you cannot accept the rules of this fight."

"Spy," Scout tried but Spy easily quieted him by pulling his hat down in front of his face.

"It's not that," Sonny held her arms. She hadn't told them about her scrapbook. But by the look on his face Medic understood why this bothered her so much.

"Then do enlighten us petit homme," Spy blew smoke in her face. "Because if you were in Sniper's place I would not hesitate to."

"KILL ME!" she shouted. "I know. Just leave me alone," she bolted past him and out of the respawn room.

"Sonny!" Medic called. He turned and gave Spy and ugly glare. "You understand nothing, sie blind einfalts." He then turns and runs after their youngest teammate. He caught up to her right before she reached her room. "He does not understand," he told her. "None of zhem do. Perhaps if ve tell zhem," he offered.

"No," she replied. "It's bad enough you know. But… I'll deal with it. It's just," she went in and only left the door open a crack. "I just need to be alone right now." It took some time but she eventually heard his boots continuing on down the hallway after she closed the door.

~*~

The next day.

"Go ahead," she told Sniper standing clearly out in the open. Up until then she'd accepted killing herself or attempting to get out of the situation. But she had to admit… This wasn't her Sniper anymore. He didn't know her. He didn't care. All the same she remembered him. Which meant she couldn't rightfully kill him. But that didn't mean she couldn't let him kill her. Maybe this was the wrong move but she was sick of it. Sick of running and sick of Spy looking down at her. This wasn't a way out but it was something.

She stood there and waited for the inevitable head shot that would happen. It would probably only take a few seconds, she wouldn't feel a thing, and then she'd reappear in her team's respawn room. Then she could bolt off to another point in the battlefield. Maybe she could find a spot where he wouldn't be. But the shot didn't come.

She looked and could've sworn she saw the glint of the gun's scope in the sun. He was there… Why wasn't he killing her? Was this some sort of game? She was actually startled when Soldier ran over to her yelling something but didn't get the last two feet as his head exploded. It only took one shot and she stood there and watched his body disappear. Then she turned but the glint didn't move. Which meant he was up there and purposefully not killing her.

Slowly, trying not to get her hopes up in case this was a game or something, she made her way to his nest. It was eerily like the RED one he had only switch out the color red for blue. She looked over and spotted him. She had to admit it was really weird. She was just so used to seeing them in red it was like a culture shock seeing blue instead.

He acknowledged she was there and nodded for her to come in. She did so slowly and made sure to keep her arms where he could see them. BLU or not she wasn't a threat to him. "Sit there," he indicated a crate and she did.

"Ok." Once she sat down he turned from the window and looked at her. She fought not to fidget. It was sometimes hard to tell what Sniper was thinking thanks to his glasses.

"Why?"

"What?"

"Why 'aven't you been killin' me?" he more demanded than asked.

"Because," she looked down at her pants.

"Because why?" he put down the rifle but held his blade up. Like she'd be intimidated by it. "And why is it every time we're out there…" He paused. "Is yer name Sonny?" She looked up and he got his answer. "It is," he seemed to confirm something.

"You know my name?" she prompted.

"That," he took a step closer. "And the fact each time I see you I get these… Flashes. Memories of you. Of the two of us talkin' and standin' outside and such. But it doesn't make sense!" he stabbed the crate she was on right next to her. She stiffened but didn't move as he blocked her way out. "I'm a BLU. You're a RED. We're enemies."

"You were autobalanced," she said.

"What of it?"

"Which means we were on the same team once," she kept on. "We were friends Sniper. I know autobalance is supposed to take the memories away. Probably for this reason. But it didn't for me." She made sure she was looking right into his eyes. "I remember you. And maybe you remember me for some reason."

"That's why you 'aven't been pickin' me off," he reasoned. He took a step back as reason came over his face. "But you were just gonna…"

"I didn't think you remembered me," she said. "I can't kill you but I figured it wouldn't hurt if you killed me."

He seemed lost for a second as he fixed his hat. A moment later he put the blade away. "This ain't right," he looked back at her. "I don't remember bein' a RED or any of the others. But I remember you mate." He walked back over to the window. "And you me. So, I can't just kill ya."

"Sniper," she got up.

"But we can't be mates right now," he held up his hand. "I'm BLU and you're RED. You gotta get out of here. I can't say I won't stop shooting the others…"

"And I won't stop bashing your new team in," she said. "But maybe we could just not kill each other?"

He stopped his pacing for a moment and looked at her. "Good enough," he grabbed his rifle again. "Now you best get movin'. Your team'll be missin' you soon."

"I'll see you soon," she patted him on his arm a moment. "Bye." She bolted out into the insanity of the battlefield once more.

~*~

Later that week.

Sniper got some pats on the back as he appeared out of the RED respawn. The last one to approach him was Sonny who actually hugged him. The Sniper was somewhat at a disadvantage and only patted the Rogue's back before Sonny broke away. "I'm glad you're back."

"Good to be back mate," he tipped his hat at him before he started to walk away.

"Sniper?"

"Yeah mate?"

"Do you… Recall anything about being a BLU? Anything at all?"

"Not that I can think of," he said. "I don't remember a rutty thing."

"Oh ok," Sonny felt defeated.

"There somethin' wrong mate?"

"It's nothing," Sonny put on a smile and walked away. "Nothing you'd remember at least."


	4. Heads Up

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Short chapter.**

Sonny knew it would be inevitable. At one point or another she saw all of her teammates be autobalanced. None of them ever remembered what had happened while they were on the BLU team. Sometimes she wondered if that was for the best. But she still couldn't kill them, much to Spy's disdain and the others reluctant acceptance.

She knew sooner or later it would be her turn. She wondered what it would be like. To wake up in a different base surrounded by different faces. None of which she knew. It would probably be like starting all over again. The thought kept her up some nights. The others were just so used to it they didn't give it a second thought. Except Medic. He was the only one who knew. But it wasn't like he could do a thing about it.

The day was like any other day really. Nothing seemed abnormal about it. They were fighting the BLUs and then they heard the Administrator call out that autobalance was now in play. She tried not to let it bother her; she'd heard it enough times she was almost used to it. "Heads up," Scout passed her and charged on down the path. They were trying to flank around the back and catch the BLUs off guard. "Let's do this."

She nodded as he went left and she went right. She thought she heard firing and Scout cry out in pain. Sonny slightly turned her head and mentally braced herself to deal with him when he respawned in BLU. She was so distracted she didn't notice the BLU sentry pointed right at her when she rounded a corner.

~*~

Later.

"We did it!" Scout cheered as they stood on the point. "Woho!"

"Calm down," Spy dusted dirt off of his suit. "This is our first victory this week."

"Which means it's time to celebrate!" Demoman cheered and chugged down some of his whiskey. Slowly the members of the team gathered from where they'd been in the battlefield. They all casually looked around and wondered who'd been unlucky enough to be switched to the BLU team. But they counted and they were all there…

"Hey?" Scout spoke up. "Any you guys seen Sonny?"

"Wasn't he with you last?" Engie asked.

"Ya. But I lost track of 'em when I got shot in the arm by that BLU Soldier…" He drifted off and they all came to the horrifying realization at the same time.

"S-Sonny was autobalanced," Medic stated. All of them looked around at one another. "Zhere's no other explanation."

"But if that's the truth Doc," Engie spoke up. "Then why can we still remember him?"


	5. BLU

None of the team could understand it. Why did they remember their Rogue? This had never happened before. Engie checked but their respawns and thus autobalance was working like it should.

"This shouldn't be happnin'," Scout paced back and forth across the floor. He hadn't stopped once after they'd all came to the realization.

"It is lad," Demo started in on another bottle.

"Maybe it's a glitch?" Enige thought out loud. "The teams were sorta out of whack thanks to Sonny even bein' here. It could be…"

"I have a better idea," Medic spoke up. "But it is just a zheory."

"Go ahead Doc," Sniper said as they all looked at him.

"You see a zhort vhile ago Sonny came to me and mentioned how he could remember vhoever was autobalanced."

"Phut?" Pyro asked.

"Vhat does Doctor mean?" Heavy questioned.

"For vhatever reason Sonny could remember vho was autobalanced. I'm not sure how but it might have zomething to do vith this."

"You mean the lad remembered everything?" Demo asked and the others understood the implications of it. If Sonny remembered who they were even after the autobalance then he'd… It suddenly explained a lot.

"Yes," Medic fixed his glasses. "He came to me and asked if zhis had happened before. I told him no. I also told him ve zhould tell all of you… To get you off of his back. But he refused. You all understand vhat zhis means right?"

"That's why Sonny could never kill us," Scout finally sat down on a crate.

"Crickey."

"Shit."

"Pmrh."

"You said it."

"But what I don't get," Engie spoke once more. "Even if he somehow remembered us then why is it we can still remember him?"

"Perhaps it is like you zaid," Medic stated. "Sonny's class being introduced already disrupted the autobalance zystem. Perhaps it also has to do vith Sonny himself. He already zuffers from amnesia. Maybe zhe autobalance could not deal vith it. All of zhis could be a zide effect of that. Or as you ztated earlier it could all just be a glitch. Vhatever the case ve now find ourselves in a precarious position. Sonny is on the BLU team."

They all sort of looked around at each other. The next time they saw Sonny on the battlefield he'd be on the opposite team. Which meant they were supposed to kill him. It made knots form in their stomachs.

"It does not matter," Spy said. "Sonny is a BLU and we have jobs to do."

"You tellin' me you could shot him in the face knowin' 'em?" Scout accused.

"We are professionals," the other RED countered. "We cannot allow our… Feelings to get in the way. Now, if you will excuse me gentlemen. I suggest you all retire as well. We have an early day tomorrow."

"Bloody spook," was all Sniper said as the others eventually made their way to their rooms. None of them looked forward to the next day.

~*~

The following day.

They all bolted out the doors once the Administrator called, "Get moving!" They kept their eyes peeled for the BLUs as they went about trying to move their bomb to the point. None of them said anything but they all watched for the familiar sight of their Rogue. This was different from all the other times they'd killed their turned-enemy comrades. This time they would be facing someone they not only remembered but knew fairly well.

Scout was the first to run into their old teammate. "Sonny!" he yelled seeing the Rogue as he was the only one at the enemy bomb. He had to admit it felt wrong seeing Sonny in blue clothing. The Rogue turned his head and Scout briefly wondered if he remembered. "You gotta…" he started to warn but then was forced to dash away as Sonny opened fire on him.

He bolted around a corner and caught his breath for a minute as his brain tried to process what had just happened. Sonny had just _fired_ on him. Nothing about that sounded right. He peeked around the corner and saw Sonny moving the bomb. He bolted around the corner. "Sonny," he tried again. "Stop that!" The Rogue turned to face him. "Don't ya remember me?"

For a moment Sonny just stared at him. He thought maybe he'd broken through. Until the Rogue pointed his shotgun at him and said, "Back off RED!" Pain flared in his shoulder and he just got out of the way in time not to lose his head.

~*~

It didn't go well for anyone else who happened to run into their old teammate. Sonny didn't seem to know any of them. He even attempted to kill them a few times but had so far not been lucky enough. In return the REDs found it difficult to fire on their old comrade. Even wearing BLU they were so used to seeing the Rogue they simply often didn't think to fire in his direction. When they did notice they couldn't seem to pull the trigger or pull out their melee weapons.

"I will teach that traitor to change teams!" Soldier had yelled. A few of the REDs just looked at each other but didn't stop him from storming out into the battlefield. He managed to get the drop on Sonny by rocket jumping up to the landing he'd been standing on.

Sonny pulled out her hammer on instinct but Soldier knocked it out of her hands with his shovel. "I will beat your brains out until you remember your true team!" The Rogue didn't reply as he checked his weapons but found himself to be out. He was stuck between the Soldier and the wall. Soldier raised his weapon like he'd done a hundred times before… "Brace yourself maggot!"

But he froze. The look on Sonny's face made him freeze. Sonny looked like he was genuinely worried about being beaten to death. He… He couldn't do it. Sonny was probably the only one who listened to him rant for hours on Sun Tzu. Right then the BLU Demoman came by and happened to chuck a bomb at his head. Thus ending the awkward moment.

The others looked at him later but he just gave them a shake of his head. And so time wore on.

~*~

Sometime later.

"This is ridiculous," Spy stated looking at all of them as they congregated in one building. "Your inability to kill him is slowing you all down."

"Well it ain't like the other times," Scout said. "We know Sonny…"

"But it seems he does not remember us," he pointed out. "To him we are the enemies." He began to walk out of the room.

"Where you goin?" Sniper asked.

"To deal with the problem."

"You can't just," Scout started but was stopped by the Engineer.

"I don't like it either," he said. "But Spy has a point. And if we can't do it… Maybe he can."

~*~

Shortly.

Sonny ran up the stairs and held back from jumping out. Not two seconds later the RED Scout bolted past in the hall and she thought she might be able to sneak up behind him. But then she got a sinking feeling in her stomach. Like someone was watching her… She heard a noise and acted out of instinct as she ducked to the left.

Good thing she did because she saw the RED Spy uncloak. "Wow!"

"Merde," Spy cursed. He'd hoped to just sneak up behind the Rogue and stab him in the back. Looks like he'd have to do it the hard way. "Promise not to bleed on my suit, and I'll kill you quickly."

"Shit on a stick!" Sonny cursed and barely managed to avoid Spy stabbing her in the throat. She reached for her hammer but in such close quarters the Spy had the advantage. That and the fact her leg happened to hit side of a crate distracted her for a split second.

Spy took advantage of that second. He threw himself forward and managed to pin Sonny using one arm so she fell against the crate and was basically sitting on it. With his other hand he held his knife. He raised it and said, "It is nothing personal."

"I," Sonny started looking up at him. The big eyed look he was giving Spy actually made the older merc pause. Was there recognition there? He shook off the thought. It did not matter. He had a job to do.

"Tricks will not save you."

He was somewhat surprised the Rogue wasn't trying to use his hesitation to fight back. Instead he just looked at him and didn't even seem to mind the knife. Even as Spy prepared to plunge it into the smaller man's heart. "Spy?"

Spy's knife just stopped short of the Rogue's chest. He looked up into Sonny's eyes and could've sworn he saw something familiar there. Unfortunately, it was the last thing he saw as the BLU Soldier chose that time to round the corner and shot him in the back of the head.

He reappeared in respawn and after the battle his teammates sought him out. Wondering if he'd been able to go through with it. He shrugged and stated the enemy soldier had killed him before he could finish the job. None of them commented on that. They knew Spy hadn't been able to kill Sonny. And from what he'd seen it had shaken him up although he'd never admit it. They could tell by the way his hand lightly shook when he held his cigarette.


	6. Gone But Not Forgotten

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Last chapter and thank you all for your support!**

The REDs might have won that day but they all felt personally defeated. None of them could kill Sonny and they all felt somewhat like shit for giving Sonny so much crap about not being able to kill them. Now they knew exactly what their teammate must've been feeling.

That night they all spent some time in the rec room before dinner. It wasn't unusual for them and right now they needed some bonding time to wrap their heads around this new development. None of them knew a small figure was slowly and quietly making their way into the RED base.

The individual made it down the halls and past any security features that might've normally stopped an intruder. The figure looked around but began making their way toward the rec room where all of the voices were. The person hesitated outside the main doors before slowly pushing them open and walking inside.

You could hear a pin drop. None of the REDs had noticed at first but then someone happened to look over and froze. The others naturally turned their heads to see what he was looking at. What they saw was surprising to say the least.

It was Sonny. Standing there unarmed in her BLU uniform. She stood there somewhat shifting from foot to foot. Not really knowing what to say. All of them were staring at her. "Hi?" was all she was able to come up with.

"W-what?" Scout had to clear his throat. "What are ya doin' here?"

Sonny didn't answer for a moment but fought the lump in her throat. "I… I remember."

"Vhat?" Medic asked. By now they'd all gotten up from where they'd been sitting. Some seemed tense like the Rogue would try and attack them. A funny notion seeing as their numbers alone would guarantee they could just rip the smaller man apart. They had to admit in that BLU uniform and with no weapons their old teammate looked tiny compared to them.

"I remember everything," Sonny went on staring at the floor. "I remember all of you and being on the RED team. I tried to ask the BLU guys but they said they never remembered anything and you guys never remembered after being autobalanced." She looked up at them.

"But you shot at us!" Scout accused and he tried to force down the hurt in his voice.

Sonny noticeably flinched. "I'm sorry. I didn't remember at first. But when I went to sleep at night I got these visions. I think they were memories. Of all of you. Then I started experiencing it during the day, during battles when I saw you. Then I noticed you were either avoiding me or not killing me on purpose. I wondered if you guys remembered me too…" The Rogue looked up at them and they could've sworn they saw him holding back tears. "You didn't remember before. You never do."

"I apologize kleiner," Medic was the first to act. He briskly walked over and half embraced her. "You zhould not have had to go through zhat alone."

"Yeah Sonny," Scout came over and patted her on the shoulder. "We gave you all that shit. Guess it came to bite us in the ass huh?" His attempt at humor kept Sonny from fully breaking down and she didn't cry. But at that moment she couldn't talk either so she just nodded.

"It is good to have little man back," Heavy gave her a smack on the shoulder.

"MYP!" Pyro ran over and full on hugged her.

"Nice to see you too," she found her voice again. "It's nice to see all of you while not in a fight."

"Good to know you're not a traitor private!"

"Nice havin' you back pardner."

"You're a sight for a sore eye lad."

"Got some balls comin' over here mate," Sniper pointed out. They all took in what he meant. If Sonny had judged wrong then he would've been torn apart by them instead of welcomed.

"I figured the worst would be you all kill me and I'd just be respawned. No biggie," she shrugged it off. "I gotta say. I hate the color blue. I prefer red. Plus, the BLU team isn't as fun as you guys. I think they all have rulers shoved up their asses or something."

The REDs couldn't help it as the tension officially broke and they all either laughed or chuckled at that. They had to admit it was good having their Rogue back. It didn't matter he was wearing blue as he sat down and ate with them like any other night. At this point in time they weren't enemies. They were a team again and that type of bond couldn't be ruined even by autobalance. Though they all wondered what made their Rogue special. Why he was able to recall things when they couldn't. Some couldn't help but think back to how Sonny never killed anyone who was autobalanced. Maybe it was because, in some way, he was the better man.

~*~

They were all somewhat sad when they had to see the Rogue off that night. Sonny had to head back to the BLU base to get some sleep. That and it would be suspicious if she stayed in the RED base for the night. But they all agreed not to go after one another the following day, not that it really needed to be said. But Sonny and they would act like they were to keep up appearances.

"Sonny," Spy stopped her before she left. "A word perhaps?"

"Yes?"

"You said you recall everything?"

"I do."

"Then there is something I wish to know."

"Ok."

"I was autobalanced with you on this team right?"

"You were."

"You couldn't kill me could you?"

"No," she admitted. "I couldn't kill any of you. But," she thought back to when he could've stabbed her.

"Then consider us even and never bring it up again," he straightened his suit and made his way back toward his own base.

Sonny smiled and couldn't help but let out a small chuckle. "Spy!" she called out. He turned and looked back at her over his shoulder. "You're a terrible liar. You know that?"

"Do not test my patience petit homme," he walked off.

~*~

Another day.

"Autobalance has been disabled," the Administrator announced and they all froze for a second. That meant! Scout took off for the respawn being the fastest of the group.

"SONNY!" he yelled seeing the younger man come out of their team's respawn. His previously blue uniform was once again the familiar red. He picked the younger man up and nearly threw him about out of excitement.

"Man is it good to be back," Sonny didn't complain as she was nearly passed around from teammate to teammate like some sort of doll. She'd missed this. She'd missed her team. Being a BLU had blown.

And although none of them would openly admit it the REDs had missed Sonny. It was somewhat odd seeing as they never got this worked up if anyone else got autobalanced. But some of them thought it had to do with Sonny remembering them. Sonny, who couldn't remember anything about himself somehow remember them. Even when everyone else forgot and they couldn't recall who they truly were. With Sonny around they never had to worry about being forgotten. And in turn they silently vowed to always remember their youngest member.


End file.
